AUDI Motorsport News

Audi Motorsport DTM Team Quotes Moscow 2016

Rain on Saturday, sunshine on Sunday: 25,000 spectators (throughout the weekend) witnessed two highly diverse DTM races at the Moscow Raceway, neither of which went the way Audi Sport had been wishing for. Quotes following the DTM’s visit to Russia.

Dr. Wolfgang Ullrich (Head of Audi Motorsport)

“The Moscow weekend didn’t go according to our plans. On Saturday, following a difficult qualifying session, we didn’t really do a good job of coping with the wet race. Nevertheless, we managed to make up ground in the championship with a good team performance. We haven’t really understood yet what the problem was in qualifying on Sunday. Still bringing four cars into the points from grid positions that started with twelfth place was certainly not to be expected and therefore all the more gratifying.”

DTM Moskau 2016 Start Image Credit Audi Communications Motorsport​

Dieter Gass (Head of DTM at Audi Sport)

“Obviously, we can’t be happy with our overall results at Moscow. Especially in qualifying, we weren’t fast enough. In the rain on Saturday, it was hard to achieve more from our grid positions, especially since the race started behind the safety car. On Sunday, we didn’t manage to get the tires to work precisely in qualifying. We need to analyze why that was the case. Following the catastrophic qualifying, we at least managed to bring four cars into the points. Now we have to fully concentrate on the Nürburgring. There we have to find our usual form again particularly in qualifying.”

Mattias Ekström (Red Bull Audi RS 5 DTM #5) position 5 / position 9

“It may sound strange, but personally I’m quite happy with my performance in qualifying. On Saturday, a clean lap was good for position five and on Sunday, well, just for position 15 – we still need to look at where we were off the mark there. While I had an unspectacular race on Saturday, there was plenty of action on Sunday. It was brutally great fun, it was pure entertainment. Edo (Mortara) came from the rear, so I didn’t make life unnecessarily difficult for him. But even as a ‘bodyguard’ I had a thrilling day.”

“Advancing on Sunday from grid position 17 to sixth place – that was no doubt one of my greatest comebacks in the DTM and huge fun. Very good teamwork contributed to this as well. We can’t be happy with our two top-ten finishes because we could have done better. Looking at gaps and doing math games is of no help in the title race – we now have to look at every single race and try to clinch victories again. Now we’re traveling to the Nürburgring – a track I really like and that suited me well in the past.”

Nico Müller (Playboy Audi RS 5 DTM #51) position 13 / position 7

“We were very fast throughout the entire weekend – except, unfortunately, when it matters most, which is in qualifying. At least, in position seven on Sunday, we still scored a few points, plus the fastest race lap which, obviously, boosts motivation. So, a lot more would have been possible. We’re going to take the positives home, learn from the questions yet to be answered and try to battle for the big trophies again at the Nürburgring.”

“This wasn’t a perfect weekend although we were fast in both races. On Saturday, we didn’t optimally manage qualifying in difficult conditions. I was pretty happy to at least have scored a few points. Toward the end of the race, I closed the gap to the group battling for position four but would have had to take a big risk to overtake Martin. On Sunday, things just weren’t going well at all. We had technical issues in qualifying, so I only took position 20. On the first race laps, I managed to advance pretty well, but then I was a little too optimistic in my attempt to overtake da Costa. I think he didn’t see me at all and turned the wheel in a perfectly normal way. I received a drive-through penalty for the collision and then another one because I was too fast in the entrance to the pit lane – that’s never happened to me before in my career. We still have six races and are not going to give up. But now we definitely need a few smooth weekends.”

“In view of the fact that Audi was struggling a bit here, I’m pretty happy with my result and the points. For me, this was my comeback after my wrist injury. I wasn’t completely sure about being fit enough, but the race on Sunday proved it. I was able to make up ten places and, thanks to ‘Eki,’ recover two more positions in the last turn. The first race on Saturday wasn’t so bad either, but I was hardly able to see anything in the rain and simply tried to bring the car home safely in one piece.”

“Following the summer break, we made a step forward here at Moscow – however, it wasn’t the big one we’d been hoping for. In the rain, we were good. With position seven we showed a clear improvement in qualifying, which felt good. On Sunday, qualifying wasn’t good, but the race with a slightly different strategy was okay after all. We made up ten positions, which is a positive. Obviously, we’re aiming to advance further, but I regard Moscow at least as a small step in the right direction.”

Miguel Molina (Teufel Audi RS 5 DTM #17) position 17 / position 11

“This wasn’t a good weekend. In the wet conditions on Saturday we were in contention at the front in qualifying for a long time, but then dropped back far in the last two minutes when the track dried off. So, in the race it was only about bringing the car home safely. On Saturday, it was difficult for all Audi drivers in qualifying. In the race, we made up a few positions and supported our title candidates as best we could. Of course there were no points awarded for that – we’d like to definitely make up for that at the Nürburgring.”

“Unfortunately, it was another poor weekend. I had no grip at all in qualifying – not in the rain on Saturday or on a dry track on Sunday. That’s absolutely frustrating because, subjectively, I’m driving at the limit, but am not making headway. In the race, things are always going pretty well. My race pace was right again here on both days. But that doesn’t do you any good when you start from the rear. Plus, on Sunday, the clutch wasn’t working. That was of no help especially at the start. We did a pretty good job of fixing that during the pit stop.”

Hans-Jürgen Abt (Team Director Audi Sport Team Abt Sportsline)

“Our performance in qualifying wasn’t perfect on either day – we still need to do a lot of work to analyze and resolve this. But in the race we showed a strong and cohesive team performance twice. Especially on Sunday, four cars in the top ten were the maximum that was possible. Edo (Mortara) showed a great comeback, but Mattias (Ekström) and Nico (Müller) proved that they’re real fighters as well. The fastest pit stop of the race went to us too – thank you to the whole team for that. Now we’re going to do a good job of working on all our issues and make sure that we’re going to be on the grid with sharp weapons again at the Nürburgring.”

Ernst Moser (Team Director Audi Sport Team Phoenix)

“Moscow used to be a superb track for Audi. That’s why we were surprised to see how strong the competition was here. On a wet track, we had to admit defeat to Mercedes and on a dry one to BMW – in an extreme way already in qualifying. In Saturday’s qualifying, we were almost heading for pole with Timo (Scheider) up until the last turn. Unfortunately, he made a slight braking mistake, so we were left with grid position seven. With ‘Rocky,’ timing wasn’t optimal in qualifying. The race speed was right with both of them. On Sunday, qualifying was a disaster. Like the whole year before, we had no grip again with either car. In the race, both had a good pace again. But qualifying is crucial – and we’re just not on the mark there at the moment.”

Arno Zensen (Team Director Audi Sport Team Rosberg)

“This wasn’t our weekend. On Saturday, I was still quite happy because we at least scored points with Jamie (Green). On Sunday, he was unfortunately a little too optimistic while overtaking. That’s a shame because in terms of speed he was pretty good. Adrien (Tambay) drove a strong race on Sunday and in the end still scored two points in the final turn.”